Once or twice a year, I experience dizziness spells in the middle of the night.
My wife drives me to the ER. The cute interns take turns asking me questions over and over.
Some of them try to act like real doctors.
I ask them technical questions in return and see them squirm they way out.
The next day I go to a specialist.
Diagnosis: vertigo.
I asked him: Explain vertigo.
He replies: Sometimes there's a pressure between the eardrums and some veins in the brain.
The cause is unknown...
I leave the clinic. Didn't take the unknown cure he prescribed to fix the unknown cause of the unknown condition called vertigo.
I will definitely explain it when I solve this mystery.
The needles in the limbs I experience very often,
which happens when sitting too long (in a jeepney with very little soft cushion)
or sleeping on one side too long.
I now ride a bike and sleep with a 4-foot-bolster
(with Angelina Jolie's face printed) to keep me company.
Case solved.
<doctor's spectacles on>
Careful attention to nutrition and your own body is a lifelong project.
Ganon talaga ang nagkakaidad (we all grow old and die, no choice)
Start making a journal and record any curious conditions.
Start taking notes, reading up and know the terminology.
Do you need to undergo blood analyses, urine and stool analysis,
electrocardiogram, colonoscopy, mammogram, pap smear, etc.
Don't be shocked when the doctor says you can't race anymore or you can't bike anymore.
Mahal magkasakit (Who said getting old and ill was easy?)
Memorial plans are a way of life. They are used one way or the other.
Make sure they're fully paid.
I know lots of people would hate me for saying this,
but sense of health precedes my sense of humor.
Besides dehins ako plastic
(I'm not running for office or joined the Philippine Idol and needed your votes).
Here goes:
Stop smoking, all of you. Espcially the girls!!!
Smoking hurts your reproductive system (among other numerous organs in your precious body), for life.
Don't think that quitting one day and you will earn back your original health.
Sorry, doesn't work that way.
Understand that all the systems of our body (circulatory, respiratory, skeletal, muscular, etc) is complex.
As we grow, the healing process deteriorates.
Like an aging photocopier, the result gets worse in time. You don't get back THE original.
Breaks/dislocation/twist/sprain and all the stress we put
in our body might be peanuts when we were teenagers (like I am)
but at the onset of middle age (like most of you), the body's ability to heal, to maintain molecular stability goes down.
Body metabolism slows down. We get fat and that starts a myriad of other problems.
And there's osteoporosis to deal with.
The cascade or domino effect continues.
In a nutshell:
The best time to care for your body is now.
Consult your doctor, but it's always better to take care of your body yourself.
After all, you're the only person who can really assess and decide the kind of lifestyle that suits you.
You might want to check for anemia and hypertension.
Don't forget to check if you had a heart attack!
Sometimes the symptom may simply be numbness on certain parts of the body
or profuse sweating or fainting spells.
Hmm... I'll send the bill next week.
<doctor's spectacles off>
A dinner treat will do, Tolits.
I know a nice vegetarian resto here in noodletown.
Nice to look at but beware, they all taste the same! ;D
P.S. Believe me or not, my 2 cents worth (itanong mo pa sa duktor!)